


Davey is WAY Cooler Than David

by Maisie_Ackerman



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Davey is younger David, David is older David, Hope that makes more sense to ya'll, Magic, Max/Davey have a kinda brotherly relationship, Max/David have a father/son relationship, Maxvid is joked about, The one where Max gets to meet little jaded David, You can tear music camp! Max from my cold dead hands, and David is just, and fuckin loves him, and theorized about by other characters, but it isn't Maxvid, cuz that'd be weird, so fucking done
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-11
Updated: 2017-10-10
Packaged: 2018-12-26 08:27:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 11,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12055131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maisie_Ackerman/pseuds/Maisie_Ackerman
Summary: The one in which some old book in the Quartermaster's store is able to conjure up David's younger and way more jaded self and Max thinks he's fucking great, so naturally the two of them team up to make one unstoppable, trouble making tag-team in order to put the rest of the camp through hell.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> These Chapters are going to be so fucking short to mirror how bitter I am about the episodes of the show being so short. And because I can get them out quicker this way.

“Max what are you even hoping to find in here?” Neil asked. He was keeping look out by the door, seemingly even more nervous than usual. Not that Max really blamed him, the Quartermaster store rivaled the basement of Cameron Campbell’s summer home on spook island in terms of fucked up.

Max shoved aside the old man’s box of fucking hair (after taking the time to fish his own locks out and pocket them because no...Just. No.) and surveyed a shelf of old books and other shit. 

“I don’t know yet,” Max said, “But I’ve been thinking, it’s fucking bullshit that we have to sleep in tents when Gwen and David get to sleep in a cabin all summer, so I say we give them a taste of what it’s like to really rough it.” 

“And that leads to us being in here… why?” Neil questioned. 

“Because my plan is to release something sketchy into the counselor's cabin so that they can’t sleep in there,” Max explained, “And when I think sketchy shit, I think this fucking nightmare of place.” 

“Right,” Neil said, still sounding unhappy.

“Right,” Max agreed, “Now just let us know if you see David coming. Nikki, you got anything?”

“I don’t know,” Nikki said, looking at a jar, curiously, “I think these are eyeballs...”

“Eh, not good enough,” Max waved it off, “We’re looking for something either alive and dangerous, or something that reeks like a motherfucker.”

Max climbed up higher on the shelves, using whatever books or jars there were as footholds. There had to be something around this place. Something that would make even Gwen, squeamish, and after having to help Space Kid clean vomit out of his helmet, Gwen wasn’t squeamish of much. Max sighed, things were so much easier at the beginning of the summer, when both of his counselors were innocent and unsuspecting of the hell Max was prepared to bring down on them.   

“Max, Nikki, David and Gwen are headed to the mess hall, keep it quiet,” Neil said in the whisper, closing the door as much as he could while still giving him room to peek out. 

Max nodded. Guess they better make this quick. 

Max climbed higher on the shelves, spying some strangely colored liquid in a jar on the top shelf. Well that looked like it smelled nasty. He smirked and pulled himself up, searching for a foothold with his left foot. It caught on a book and he hauled himself up and grabbed the jar, flinging the book off the shelf. 

Max nearly fell off the shelf when the book landed on the floor, opened to a random page and proceeded to scream at them, glowing ominously. 

“What the hell is that!?” Neil asked, turning around with wide eyes. 

It was Nikki who was brave enough to leap forward and silence the book by slamming the fucking thing closed, leaving the three ten year olds to stare at it in wide eyed silence. 

“What kind of fucking witchcraft does that fucking axe murderer do?” Max wondered out loud, hopping down from the bookcase. The three of them all paused when they heard voices outside. 

“Did you hear that?” It was Gwen, “I thought I heard screaming...”

“We should probably go check it out,” David said, “I’d hate to think one of the campers got hurt.”

Max stared at the book a moment longer, before back at the jar of greenish-gray liquid in his hand and shrugged, “Whatever guys, I don’t even what to know what that thing is, we got what we came for, let’s bail.”  

Neil and Nikki both nodded in agreement and made it to the window on Nikki’s side of the room, sneaking out right before David could open the door and peer around in confusion. 

“That’s strange...” David muttered, “I could have sworn that noise came from in here...”

“Whatever,” Gwen said, “As long as no one’s hurt and I don’t have to do extra paperwork for it, I’d consider that a win.”


	2. Chapter 2

Max, Nikki and Neil were on their way back to their tent after a job well done and Max was feeling pretty good about himself as he shook the jar in his hand and smirked. He still wasn’t completely sure what the substance was, but it looked nasty enough.

Meanwhile, Neil was complaining bitterly.

“Seriously,” Neil said, “There has to be some kind of regulations that say that guy shouldn’t be allowed around kids. I mean, seriously, a screaming book? What is this? Fucking Harry Potter?”

“Why does it not surprise me that you’ve read Harry Potter,” Max said, unimpressed with his best friends never ending nerdiness.

“Why does it not surprise me that the Quartermaster has a screaming book,” Neil shot back, “Because this camp is fucking insane.”

“Touche,” Max, shrugged, not feeling up to argue the fact that that comeback didn’t really make any sense.  “Whatever, let’s just see what’s in this fucking Jar already.”

The three friends gathered around curiously as Max cautiously untwisted the lid. Max didn’t even need to untwist it all the way when the smell hit them like a ton of bricks. He immediately tightened the lid again and held the jar away from him, covering his nose and mouth with his sleeve, coughing.  

Yup. That would do.

“God!” Neil was gasping for air, having backed away from the jar a good few feet, “What is that? Essence of Skunk?”

“That is definitely essence of skunk alright,” Nikki agreed, who had stepped away but seemed the least affected by the stench, “I should know, I’ve been sprayed enough times to tell. And it seems to have been aged to perfection.”

She laughed and Max smirked. This would be perfect. He didn’t want to think about how the Quartermaster had gotten it, but it was just what he needed to give Gwen and David a taste of their own medicine. If he had to sleep in a fucking tent all summer, David had to too goddamn it. He was the one who was supposed to actually like camping after all.

“Come on,” Max said, holding the jar as far away from himself as possible, “Let’s get rid of this shit before the stench starts to sink into my hoodie.”

The trio made their way over to the counselor's cabin as quickly as they could, checking to make sure the coast was clear before Max slid open a window.

“Well,” Max shrugged, “Bombs away.”

Max tossed the jar in to the cabin, and heard the satisfying sound of the glass jar shattering as he closed the window behind it. Even from outside the stench made it’s way over to the three campers and they grimace, backing away.

“Come on guys,” Max said, tugging Neil and Nikki along, “that smell is starting to make my eyes burn. Let’s go see how the other rejects are doing.”  

Max, Nikki and Neil found the other campers huddled around Nerris’s castle, each doing their own thing as the lazed around, waiting for lunch.

“You look satisfied with yourself,” Preston said, as he looked up from his script, having spotted the smirk on Max’s face. “What pray tell have you done this time?”

“Fuck off Preston,” Max immediately snapped, but he was in too good a mood not to brag, so the 'fuck off' was more of a courtesy than anything else, “If you must know, while you losers were all doing whatever bullshit you guys do all day, the three of us were stinking up the counselor's cabin with some shit we found in the Quartermaster’s store. David and Gwen will be sleeping outside for a week, at least.”

“You went back into the Quartermaster’s store?” Harrison asked, eyebrows raised, “Wasn’t once enough?”

Neil shuddered, “Trust me, it’s just as disturbing the second time.”

“Yeah,” Max shrugged, “The guy’s got some pretty fucked up shit in there. One of his books fucking screamed at us. It was some Lord of the Rings bullshit.”

“Yeah it was super weird,” Nikki agreed, “See look.”

Neil and Max both had to do a double take as Nikki pulled that same fucking devil book out of seemingly nowhere.

“Nikki!” Neil screeched, his voice cracking, “What are you doing with that thing!?”

Nikki shrugged, “I don’t know, I just pick things up, it’s what I do.”

Max facepalmed, “Great does this mean we have to sneak into that fucking place of a third time to put that fucking magic book back? Because I’m really not in the mood for this shit.”

“Wait,” Nerris popped her head out of the top of her castle in curiosity, “Did someone say magic book.”

“Uh, yeah, I fucking guess,” Max shrugged.

Nerris was down on the ground and out of her castle in record time, eyeing the book with wide eyes.

“May I?” She asked, curiously.

Nikki shrugged and handed over the book.

“Careful,” Neil warned, “It’s a screamer.”

“Please Neil,” Nerris waved him off. “A true mage knows her way around a spellbook.”

Nevertheless, Max, Nikki and Neil each covered their ears before Nerris could open the book and gaze inside. However, to each of their surprise, the book was silent. Max blinked in confusion and leaned in closer, eyeing the pages, which seemed to be written on in some kind of gibberish he couldn’t understand.

“Oh come on,” Max frowned, “So what? It’s only a piece of shit for us?”

“Clearly it sensed my abilities as a sorceress,” Nerris reported proudly, “Wow! Look at these spells, clearly this book was written by a powerful warlock.”

“Really!?” Nikki said excitedly, “Test something out then! I wanna see some magic!”

Nerris nodded, standing up and holding the book, her chest puffed out proudly at all the attention she was getting. She held out a hand in Neil’s direction and began to chant some of the gibberish on the page, “Revertinus Obinius Al-”

“WOAH WOAH WOAH WOAH WOAH,” Neil immediately interrupted, “Hold the phone! Why are you testing this shit out on me! I don’t wanna be turned into a frog or some shit.”

“Well I doubt that’s what the spell does,” Nerris argued.

“I don’t care!” Neil snapped, “Test it out on somebody else!”

“Who then?” She asked.

Max looked around curiously, looking for a test subject for Nerris. Who would he most want to see something horrible and magical happen to. That’s when Max spotted everyone’s favorite cheerful camp counselor out of the corner of his eyes, standing by the mess hall, talking to Gwen.  

“Hey Nerris,” Max called, “Why don’t you test your stupid spell out of David?”

“Oh! Good idea Max,” Nikki agreed, “Nerris, turn David into a frog!”

“Well, okay then,” Nerris shrugged, holding her hand out and pointing it in David’s direction instead this time. “Revertinus Obinius Albinyous!”

All the campers looked on in anticipation but nothing happened.

Nerris frowned.

“Huh, that’s not right… Let me try again!” She held her hand up once more, “Revertinus Obinius Albinyous!!” She said, louder this time.

Again, nothing.

“Maybe I should try it Nerris,” Harrison spoke up, walking over, “Maybe the spell needs a real magician’s touch.”

Nerris quickly jerked the book away and huffed.

“Please Harrison,” Nerris snorted, “this is clearly a sorceress's spellbook, it has nothing to do with your silly little illusions, why don’t you stick to card tricks and rabbits in hats.”

“Ah come on,” Harrison whined, “I just wanna try.”

“Fine,” Nerris handed over the book, “You can _try,_ but I doubt it will work for some silly little stage magician.”

“Okay,” Harrison grinned taking over the book and standing, his hand pointed in David’s direction just as Nerris had done, “Revertinus Obinius Albinyous!”

Again nothing.

“Well,” Max shrugged, “That truly was a huge waste of time. You losers have fun with the worthless book.”

“I don’t understand,” Harrison frowned. “Perhaps I’m not saying it right?”

But whatever the case was, the conversation was cut short by David’s overly cheerful and sickly sweet voice calling to them from the mess hall.

“Time for lunch campers!” He called. They could see him smiling from all the way over at Nerris’s castle. Max and many of the others groaned.

Why did David have to be so damn happy all the damn time? Max wished he was just a little more cynical like the rest of them. Just a little more jaded. Then he would be bearable. But no. Max was stuck with this happy, nice, cheerful version of him all damn summer.

Or at least... That’s what he’d thought.


	3. Chapter 3

Nerris and Harrison were still arguing over the book by time they made it over to where David was waiting for them, just outside the mess hall. Max wanted to tell them to cut it out before they got them all caught, but the less associated he was with that book, Max thought, the better. By time they'd made it over, however, the fight had turned into an all out brawl, with Nerris and Harrison each trying to tug the book away from the other. Max facepalmed in annoyance.

“Now, now, you two!” David stepped in immediately, confiscating the book and separating the two children, “Nerris, Harrison, you know the rules. There is no rough housing at Camp Campbell.”

“Really? Because it happens all the fucking time, David,” Max shot back, unimpressed.

“Language, Max,” David said, electing to ignore that comment as he turned back to the two magic kids, “Now, which one of you two does this book really belong to?”

David looked between Nerris and Harrison who both looked sheepishly at their feet. It was Nerris who spoke up finally.

“It’s neither of ours, David,” Nerris explained, “Max stole it from the Quartermaster’s store.”

“Fucking snitch!” Max cursed, jade eyes burning holes in Nerris’s direction as David turned to him with a disappointed frown. “And it wasn’t just me! Nikki and Neil helped!”

“Hey!” both of Max’s accomplices whined, glaring at their leader.

“What? If I go down, you guys are going down with me,” Max growled, “And besides, it was Nikki who actually took the damn thing!”

“Max,” David said, in the tell-tale tone that meant he was about to get a lecture, “I’m very disappointed in you! Stealing from our Quartermaster. That man is good to you, you know. He cooks meals, maintains the camp and makes sure things are in tip-top shape for all our fun camp activities. Why I’d say he deserves your utmost respect!”

“Yeah, seeing as how he has a box of hair in there and a photo album filled with just pictures of outhouses, I’m not really feeling the whole respect thing,” Max countered, shoving his hands in his pocket. That only served to make David’s frown deepen.

“But David!” Nerris piped up, “It’s a spellbook! And doesn’t a spellbook belong in the hands of a mage?”

David turned to the smaller girl and frowned, “I’m sorry Nerris, but at Camp Campbell we do not take things that belong to others.”

“Besides, the fucking spell didn’t even work so who cares?” Max added.

“Well, I’m going to go put this back, and Max, Nikki, Neil, when we get into lunch I expect you each to apologize to our dear Quartermaster for invading his privacy,” David said and all three children groaned angrily.

“Seriously, David, fucking why?” Max argued, “If you put it back now, he’ll never even have to know it was gone in the first place.”

“Well that wouldn’t be very honest, now would it, Max?” David said, placing his hands on his hips.

“So?” Max questioned seriously.

David seemed to ignore him, trudging off the the Quartermaster’s store and leaving Max to kick at the dirt at his feet angrily. Fuck David. God, why was he such a goddamn goody-two-shoes. Max didn’t often use such childish language when insulting someone, but that was the only way to describe someone like David. What kind of unrealistic fantasy land did he live in where everyone followed the golden rule and was honest and kind to one another? It was bullshit. Max wished for the millionth time that summer that he could break David and make him see things how they really were.

“Fuck you, Nerris,” Max took his pent up aggression out on the little bitch that had tattled on him, “You know why your stupid spell didn’t work, because your a shitty fucking wizard. Magic isn’t real dumb ass.”

Nerris looked taken aback by the insult.

“It is too real! And I’m not a wizard! I’m a mage!”

To everyone’s surprise, Harrison also turned on him, equally as insulted, “Yeah, Nerris is a perfectly good sorceress, Max! Just because you’re in trouble doesn’t mean you can be a jerk.”

Nerris looked at him in surprise, “You think I’m a good sorceress?”

“No, you suck,” Harrison deadpanned immediately, “But I’m the only one who gets to tell you that.”

“Who fucking cares, you both suck,” Max snapped.

“Settle down everyone, that’s enough,” David was saying as soon as he got back, separating the children and giving them all disappointed looks, “Even if whatever spell Nerris caste didn’t work that doesn’t mean magic isn’t real as long as you believe in it.”

“That’s fucking dumb, David,” Max responded immediately, sighing and pushing past David to enter the mess hall, only to stop short when he realized the hall wasn’t empty.

“What the hell..?” Max blinked in confusion.

There was a boy in the mess hall that Max had never seen before, sitting on one of the tables with his feet kicked up and a game console in his hands. He blew a stray piece of auburn hair out of his face and didn’t even bother to look up when he heard Max’s voice, only giving a smug chuckle as he responded.

“Wow, Jasper, finally upgrading to middle-school level swears, I see. Good for you, but for the last fucking time, if you care so much about whether or not I get into trouble for skipping camp activities, then fucking cover for me. Otherwise get lost.”

“Who the hell are you?” Max immediately demanded, his voice louder than the first time he spoke, causing the auburn-haired boy to look up, confused.

“Fuck, you’re not the tree-hugger. Who are you?” he snapped back.

Max’s eyes narrowed, “I asked you first.”

The auburn haired boy gave a small smirk of amusement, hopping down from his spot on the table and walking over to Max, stopping about a foot away. He was a good few inches taller than Max, with a splash of freckles across his nose and cheeks that Max couldn’t help but think looked familiar. Despite the height difference, Max held his gaze firmly.

“The name’s David,” the boy said, “But those around here who aren’t losers call me Davey.”

Max blinked in stunned silence at the boy's answer. His familiar appearance suddenly making more and more sense.

When the mess hall doors swung open for a second time, it was to let David, the real David, and the other campers into the hall for lunch, only to have them each stop short, just as Max had. David spotted the smaller, auburn haired boy and immediately gasped, his face turned white and his eyes widened as he looked on in disbelief. He seemed to be searching for something to say but this mouth simply hung open in awe.

When Max regained the ability to speak, he immediately took the opportunity to break the silence.

“Holy shit, he’s you but he’s not a fucking moron...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In my mind, the reason Davey doesn't swear in the flashback episode, was because it was a story being told to three ten-year-olds by current David who doesn't swear, especially not around kids, but in reality, he swore a lot when he was younger. 
> 
> My Davey is going to be just a little darker than the Davey we see in cannon Camp Camp. Not as dark as Max, but getting there.


	4. Chapter 4

Max, sat on his cot in his tent, staring intently at the others in front of him. As soon as the camp had pieced together who the young auburn haired boy in the mess hall was, Gwen has called an emergency meeting between her, Max, David, and Davey, their latest addition. What made it better was that, originally, Gwen had called for an emergency meeting in the Counselor’s Cabin, which had lead them to discover the gift Max had left for them.

“Aw gross!” Gwen had screeched, immediately slamming the door closed.

“What’s the matter Gwen?” Max had called, having been careful to keep his distance from the cabin.  

Gwen had spun around, furious, “Max!”

“What?” Max had asked innocently.

“ _What_? Listen if you think I don’t know that you had something to do with this..!” Gwen warned.

“What are you talking about Gwen?” Max responded, “I was with the Nikki and Neil robbing the Quartermaster’s store, remember? I had nothing to do with it.”

Gwen had scowled and growled under her breath, “Fine,” she’d bit out, “We’ll hold conference in your tent then.”

As they walked away, Davey had leaned over to Max with a raised eyebrow, “You definitely had something to do with that, didn’t you.”

“Duh,” Max responded, smugly.

Davey smirked, “Sweet.”

Now that they were all in Max’s tent together, Gwen was curiously eyeing both versions of David from her spot on Nikki’s cot with a serious expression on her face. David had taken a seat on Neil’s cot looking more than a little nervous while Max and Davey had each taken a stop on Max’s cot.  

“Excuse me,” Max finally spoke up, “But would somebody like to fill me in on why the fuck I’m here?”

At that, Davey looked up from his gaming console and piped up as well, “Yeah, and I’d like to know who the fuck you people are? What? Did they finally decide to fire Darla and Greg and actually hire somebody competent enough to do the job?”

“Please, I’d hardly call these two competent,” Max countered.

“Touche,” Davey agreed.

Gwen groan, “Max, your here because this is your fault, like always. If you hadn’t stolen that book from the Quartermaster, then this wouldn’t have happened.”

“Okay but can I please point out that it wasn’t fucking me who did that!” Max argued, “Nikki’s the one who took it. It was just my idea to break into the damn place.”  

Gwen ignored him, “As for you Davey… well, that’s more complicated…”

“I didn’t know telling me your name was that complicated,” Davey shot back unimpressed, “Or are simple tasks always this difficult for you?”

Max let out a snort of amusement and exchanged a fist-bump with Davey. Now this was a version of David Max could get used to.

“Goddamnit David,” Gwen turned to the older auburn-haired man, “Why does your past self have to be such a little shit?”

“Wait? Past self!?” Davey asked, eyes widening, “What do you mean past-self?”

“I’m sorry!” David whined, “I’d just yet to see the wonders that this world could offer and realize my full potential. I had quite a few problems dealing with my emotions before I learned how to express myself.”

Davey seemed to look between David and the rest of them for a long moment, piecing the situation together.

“Wait… You don’t mean...” Davey began to ask.

“Oh yeah,” Max interrupted, gesturing in David’s direction, “Davey, meet your delusional, woods-loving, unnaturally happy and obnoxious future self.”

David smiled sheepishly and gave a small wave.

“Hi, Davey,” David said, “I guess it’s kinda strange meeting your future self, but I’m you and, gosh, we’re all really excited to have you here for the time being. I know you have questions and we’re all trying to figure this out as best we can, same as you-”

“Ah fuck no!” Davey bolted up immediately, backing away from David as if he was something large and disgusting, “You can’t possible tell me that I turn into this pathetic bastard when I grow up! Nobody’s that happy except for psychopaths and drug addicts! And why am I still at this godforsaken camp of all places?”

David looked taken aback by the outburst.

“Well, uh, I’m still at camp because I work here now, taking care of all our wonderful campers, like Max here,” David gave Max a pleading look, as if begging for him to say something reassuring.

“Fuck you, David,” Max responded.

“I fucking work he- oh, god,” Davey pinched the bridge of his nose and groaned, “What happened to songwriting you piece of shit? Did you ever fucking do that, huh?”

David looked a little hopeful at the mention, “Well I did a little! Why, I even wrote  the offical Camp Campbell Camp Song!”

Davey’s green eyes seemed to burn as he glared as David.

“You wrote. A camp. Song,” Davey asked slowly, his voice dripping with anger, “God, that’s fucking pathetic! So you mean to tell me we didn’t do any of the shit we actually wanted to do? What happened to ‘there’s more to life than camping,’ ya fucking square? And why the hell are you so happy? What do you have to be happy about?”

David seemed to be grabbing at straws to keep things positive.

“We have the camp,” David said, softly, “And all the campers.”

“That’s it?” Davey asked, “That’s why your so happy? The camp? Seriously dude, have our parents stopped being pieces of shit?”

“Well, no-” David said, quietly, looking slightly uncomfortable.

“Did you actually do anything with our life? Does anybody even know we exist, or are we still a nobody?” Davey pressed.

David was silent.

“Great,” Davey sighed and hopped off the cot, “So nothing’s changed. The world’s shit, David, stop fucking lying to yourself.”

With that, Davey stormed out of the tent, leaving David, Gwen and Max to sit there in silence.

David sighed, leaning back, “I’m sorry about him… well, me. I-... I wasn’t in a great headspace. He just needs to see that things will get better with time and that you can find all sorts of joys in the little things. Eventually he’ll come around and become the David you all know.”

“No,” Max said, waving David off while still staring after Davey.

“No?” David blinked in confusion.

“No, he’s right David,” Max said, hopping off the cot as well, “The world is shit and your past self knows it! He’s fucking fantastic.” Max turned to David with a determined look in his eyes, “And there’s no way in hell I’m letting you convert him into the shiny, happy mindset you’ve got going on up there. One David is shitty enough, there’s no way I’m dealing with two.”

And with that Max rushed out of the tent leaving both Gwen and David with concerned and mildly disturbed looks on their faces.

“Did Max just say he thought I was fantastic..?” David questioned, “Because Max doesn’t think anyone in fantastic...”

“That’s not the part I’m worried about...” Gwen replied, “I’m not sure how I feel about Max corrupting you… I mean, two Davids would be a nightmare, sure. But I don’t think I want to live in a world with two Maxs...”

“I’m sure Max isn’t planning to corrupt him,” David offered comfortingly.

David was wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The picture that inspired this story is way to big to post directly to this fucking chapter so here's a link instead:
> 
> https://68.media.tumblr.com/4aacf567d91ecc9c39c6199264345420/tumblr_ovya5fPFam1v6l1y0o1_1280.png
> 
> By Staquid


	5. Chapter 5

Max found Davey digging behind one of the older trees by the lake. Max frowned, walking over, looking the other boy over.

Davey was tall and lanky with skinny legs and knobby knees, much like Max’s David. However, Max couldn’t help but think that Davey had better hair that David did. His auburn bangs swept over his forehead rather than sticking straight up like David’s did. He had more freckles than David did as well and his green eyes seemed much brighter. He dressed in khaki shorts like David did but he wore a one of the camp’s ugly yellow tee-shirts and a black zip-up hoodie with the sleeves rolled up.

His face was what really made him look different than David though. It was all frowns and bored looks and coy smirks as opposed to David’s cheerful grinning. It made him look rougher. More intimidating. Even if he was all long, lanky limbs, he looked dangerous and mischievous.

Max wandered over just as Davey pulled a clunky, metal lunchbox out of the dirt and popped open the top. He pulled a dirt stained and slightly damp notebook out and muttered a curse under his breath.

“Crap,” Davey huffed, flipping through the waterlogged pages with ink blotches on the page, making the writing illegible.

“What is that?” Max asked, expecting to scare the other boy with his presence but only getting a shrug out of him.

“It’s my songwriting notebook,” Davey explained, huffing a little, “Or was I guess.”

“Looks like shit,” Max commented.

“Yup,” Davey agreed.

“So what?” Max leaned against the tree Davey had been digging under, “Were you, like, in music camp when you went here or something?”

Davey looked, “What? No, I don’t go to fucking music camp, I go to Camp Campbell, unfortunately...”    

Max looked confused for a moment before he realized David probably when to Camp Campbell when they were still doing that whole racist ass sparrow bullshit and didn’t have about a million different shitty camps rolled up into one.

“Right,” Max shrugged, “So, being from the past, that’s pretty fucking crazy, huh.”

Davey shrugged, “Yeah, not exactly how I imagined spending my Saturday.”

“So does that mean you have your own time to get back to? Any ideas how to get back there or what?” Max asked, sinking down to sit next to him.

Davey scoffed, “Why the fuck would I want to? My parents are shit, all the other campers in my time are fucking losers and I had to listen to fucking Cameron Campbell and two stupid camp counselors who had no idea what they were doing all day. It was shit.”

“Yeah, I have an idea of what that’s like,” Max smirked. Finally someone who really understood him. He just couldn’t believe it was fucking David.

“My plan is to escape this fucking nightmare of a camp the first chance I get and kiss my fucked up life goodbye. Then I’ll try and do over whatever your David fucked up because there’s no way I’m turning into a pathetic moron like him,” Davey explain.

Max grinned, “That’s been my plan all fucking summer, my friend.”

Davey grinned back at him, “So then you’re telling me you wanna tag along for the ride?”

“If you need a partner in crime I’m the best schemer this camp’s got,” Max grinned, “Plus I got some back up we could use, Nikki and Neil. They’ll come in handy.”

Davey looked him over for a long time, his bright green eyes shining, “And what exactly was your name again, kid?” he asked.

Max smirked, “I’m Max.”

Davey mirrored Max’s smirk and offered the other boy his hand, “Well then, Max, you’ve got yourself a partner in crime then. We’ll be out of this fucking place in no time. And if not then we’ll bring hell down on them.”

“I like the way you think, Davey, I like the way you think,” Max grinned.


	6. Chapter 6

It was nearly dinnertime by the time Davey and Max showed back up at camp, snickering to themselves as they approached the others. When the other campers noticed the two approaching, Max with his hands in his pockets and Davey with his hands folded behind his head, they all looked at each other in confusion before Nikki and Neil made up their minds to approach. 

“Max!” Neil said, walking over and eyeing the two of them warily, “Where were you? You’ve been gone for hours. At first I thought you were still talking to David and Gwen but then I saw them pitching up tents and- where have you been?”

“Relax, Neil,” Max waved his friend off, “Davey was showing me some of the camp’s secret hideouts and shit.”

“Secret hideout!?” Nikki asked excitedly. 

“Davey..?” Neil questioned, “So it’s true…? You really are some kind of past version of David? But that shouldn’t be scientifically possible. How’d this even happen. The kind of theoretical science put into the idea of time travel is practically science fiction in and of itself.”

“Listen,” Davey shrugged, “I don’t know how it happened. All I know is that one minute I’m skipping camp activities in the mess hall and the next this kid comes walking in and suddenly I’m in the future. I don’t really care how it happened.”  
Neil studied Davey for another minute clearly not content to just leave it as ‘it just happened.’ but deciding to go over the science of the event later in their tent. 

“Right, so now that that’s all out of the way,” Max cut in, “Davey, these are the two I was telling you about. That’s Neil, he’s our brains, and this is Nikki, she’s a self-proclaimed agent of chaos.”

Davey smirked and seemed mildly impressed, “Sweet.”

The whole meeting, however, was quickly cut short as Gwen and David made their way over. David had his hands on his hips and Gwen looked like she was fighting back a headache. 

“Where have you two been!?” David demanded, “Max you know better than to wander off without telling an adult first and as for you Davey, while your new to our time, you are still an official Camp Campbell camper and therefore under Gwen’s and my care while you’re here at camp. Meaning no wandering off.” 

“God and I started actually caring about the rules too?” Davey groaned, “What’s next?”

“Relax, David,” Max said, glaring up at him, “Don’t get your panties in a twist, Davey was just showing me all his cool hideouts.” He smirked, “So. I guess that means he just showed me all of  _ your _ cool hideouts.”

David gasped a little and looked disheartened at the idea as Max and Davey exchanged a high-five wearing matching smirks.

“Anyway, come no Davey,” Max grinned, “I’ll show you to our table.”

The two brushed by the counselors, who looked on in slight horror. 

“What was that you said about Max not corrupting your past self?” Gwen asked. 

“I may have misspoke on that one...” David agreed. 

“Those two are going to drive us insane,” Gwen fumed, “Dammit David, why’s your past self such a little asshole?”

David bite his lip. He knew exactly why, but he didn’t say. Didn’t want to share with her the reasons behind Davey’s jaded and callous nature because it wasn’t quite something he wanted to share with anyone and whether his past self was here or not, didn’t change the fact that David wasn’t ready to talk about his past. 

“I never thought I’d see the day  _ you and Max  _ made a perfect tag-time,” Gwen muttered, rubbing her temples, “This camp’s in for a shit storm, I can feel it...”

“Yeah...” David agreed, staring after Max and Davey as they made their way inside. He couldn’t help but notice the way Max was grinning and genuinely laughing at something Davey had said and was stuck between wondering why he couldn’t do the same and thinking that maybe a shit-storm was worth it if Max got a friend who helped him smile like that.


	7. Chapter 7

Max’s table had never been this popular before.

Max had taken a seat with Nikki and Neil to his right, like always, only this time, to his left, Davey sat, poking at his dinner with a spork. Across the table from them, the entire camp had piled in, staring intently at Davey as if he were some kind of rare undiscovered species.

“I can't believe my magic spell really worked…” Nerris breathed in amazement.

Harrison quickly clearly his throat, “Um, how do you know I wasn't the one who cast the spell? We both read it.”

“Because,” Nerris explained, “I’m the better mage, and only an intensely powerful spell caster could have done this. It's not something you could handle, Harrison.”

The two continued with their argument while the others pushed in further.

“So you're really David?” Space Kid asked in awe.

Davey shrugged, “Yeah, but just call me Davey.”

“And you’re really from the past?” Ered prompted and Davey nodded, “Cool.”

“Wow as great as it is that you all are curious about this,” Max interrupted, suddenly, catching everyone's attention, “It is also equally annoying, if not more so, so why don't you all find your own tables and fuck off.”

The crowd dispersed quickly after  that and the four kids were left alone.

Davey poled at his food in disgust, “So I see that Quartermaster didn't pick up on any new cooking skills over the years. Honestly I can't believe the old guy is still alive. He was fucking ancient back in my time. Are we sure he’s not immortal.”

“And that is a theory I will happily test out with you one of these days,” Max agreed, “but seriously, you should stomach as much of that shit as you can, tomorrow is extremely sports camp so you’ll need the energy.”

“Extreme what-?” Davey asked, confused.

“Oh, right,” Max had forgotten to fill him in on how this shitty camp worked, “So basically, here in the future, no one gives a shit about sending their kids off to some summer camp to canoe and make arts and crafts. Everyone who gives a shit about their kids send them off to some kind of themed camp like adventure camp or science camp or theater camp.”

Davey looked a little confused but nodded in understanding.

Max continued, “So basically Cameron Campbell’s bright idea was to make one camp, claiming to be all those other camps, so when parents thought they were sending their kid off to magic camp or space camp, they were actually sending them here, to this hellhole. So what that means is, unfortunately for us, almost everyday, we're all forced to participate in one of these god awful camps so that Camp Campbell can legally say they covered science at science camp.”

“I’m not sure if that's ingenious or stupid,” Davey said slowly.

“It's both,” Max agreed, “but since I’m on the short end of the stick I still fucking hate it.”

“Fair enough,” Davey agreed, “So what stupid camp did your parents sign you up for?”

“Remember how I said themed camps were for kids whose parents give a shit about them?” Max replied, sounding even more bitter than usual, “I’m not one of those kids.”

Davey frowned. “Parents kinda suck.”

“Agreed,” Max nodded.

* * *

After Dinner, David grabbed Davey in hopes of finding him some suitable pajamas for the night (Luckily, David never threw anything away) and Max told him to meet them back at their tent when he was done.

When Davey and David were finally out of sight, Max started towards his tent with Nikki and Neil.

“So,” Neil finally broke the silence, “You and Davey seem pretty… close.”

Max shrugged, “Yeah, I guess. He's cool. Which is weird. I mean, I couldn't fucking believe it either. Who would have thought David was actually cool at one point in his life?”

“Yeah,” Nikki said, “But he is still David, ya know.”

Max shook his head, "Fuck that. There's no way I'm letting one of the actually cool people at this camp turn into some tree-hugging moron."

“Yeah, but what exactly are you planning to do, Max?” Neil questioned, “I think the guy is genetically programmed to love this camp and nature. Just because he hasn't discovered that yet doesn't mean you can keep him from discovering it ever.”

“Like hell I can't,” Max immediately snapped back, “Davey actually has the potential to br one of us, Neil. We just have to show him what that means in order to ensure that he doesn't turn into fucking David.”

“Um, Max?” Nikki questioned, “I’m pretty sure that's what past selves do. They turn into present us.”

“Not if I can help it,” Max shot back with a little bit of a smirk.

To be honest, Max didn't know why he felt the need to make sure Davey didn't turn into David. He was pretty apathetic about most things, but not this time. Not about this. Davey was just so… him. They both had shit parents and were sent to this hellhole so that their shitty parents wouldn't have to deal with them. They were both cynical little shits who realized how dull and pointless life was and it was fucking great. Max had never had someone who just got him like that, and now that he did, he didn't want to lose them to David's stupid, cheerful optimism. The thought made him angry.

David was already ruining his summer, he wouldn't let him ruin this for him too.

Neil and Nikki exchange a look as Max marched ahead to their tent.


	8. Chapter 8

The next day Max was shaken awake, not just by David's stupid voice, telling them to get up and start the day, but by a hand on his shoulder as well. 

Max grumbled, annoyed. Nikki and Neil should know better than to wake Max up before he was ready. He was even pissier than usual before his morning coffee. 

However, as soon as the aroma of coffee grounds reached his nose, Max's anger subsided and he rolled over and sat up to see who’d disturbed his sleep. 

Max almost jumped at first, thinking it was David in his tent, but a moment later the boy’s trouble-making smirk brought back Max's memories of the day before. 

Davey shoved a warm cup of coffee at Max and grinned, “Morning sleeping beauty, your friend Bill Nye the Science Guy said you take your coffee black.”

Max blinked in surprise at having his coffee hand delivered to him in bed, without even having to ask. Max could get used to this…

“Is there any particular reason you're fetching me my coffee?” Max asked anyway, ever the skeptic. 

Davey grinned, “See, I’m thinking that if we skip out on breakfast we can sneak out on this whole extreme sports thing while David is distracted,” Davey explained, “I mean, seriously, extreme sports? Look at me, Max, do I look fucking cut out for extreme sports? I was born in the body of a fucking noodle.”

Max looked the boy over as he sipped his coffee. The boy had a point. He was long and skinny as shit, but Max couldn't stop himself from thinking that Davey made it work. Somehow, on Davey, the long limbs didn't look as flimsy as they did on, say, Preston or Neil. Davey seemed more in control of his body, more comfortable in his lankiness. 

“Okay then, noodle-boy,” Max replied, hopping up and pulling his hoodie on over his head, “Where exactly do you suggest we sneak off to?”

“I have a couple ideas,” Davey grinned, “But we better get going soon before older, dumber me comes to check on us.”

The two poked their heads out of their tent to check that the coast was clear, spying David just as he disappeared into the mess hall. The two ten-year-olds exchanged nods before sneaking out and starting towards the woods on the other side of the camp, Davey leading the way. 

* * *

 

Davey made several twists and turns through the trees by the lake before the two of them ended up at a large storage shed Max hadn’t known existed, which was strange because Max had been sure that  he’d seen every inch of this place and had never come by it before.  

“What is this place?” Max questioned, raising an eyebrow at the taller boy. 

“It’s Camp Campbell’s official band storage center,” Davey said, explaining further when Max gave him a questioning look, “It’s where the camp keeps all it’s instruments and stuff for the Order of the Sparrow ceremonies. See, back in my time, we had this thing called the Order of the Sparrows and whenever somebody got into the order by being a good camper, we’d have a ceremony with shitty music and speeches and shit.”

“Trust me, I know about the order,” Max groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Your shitty future self tried to resurrect it awhile ago. It did not go well.”

“Good,” Davey said, “because it was a stupid ass tradition that needed to die”

“But hey, I mean, I guess I got half of a shitty staff out of the deal, so that’s cool, I guess,” Max said, shrugging.

“Half?” Davey raised an eyebrow. 

“It’s a long story,” Max waved him off. 

“Well, anyway, whenever the instruments used for the ceremony aren’t in use, they’re locked up in here where us small children can’t vandalize them,” Davey explained, pulling a bobby pin out of his khakis and getting to work on the lock, “So whenever I wanna skip out on activities and wanna really make sure no one finds me, I come here.”

Davey  made quick work of the lock and swung the door open. It was dark, save for the light filtering through the windows on either side of the room and dust floated in the air. There were piles of boxes scattered across the room and an old set of drums in the back as along with several other instrument cases that Max had yet to look through, the most obvious being that of a guitar and a cello. 

“This is where I come to do songwriting and stuff. Or well,  _ did  _ come I guess? It's pretty cool. I mean, almost nobody bothers to remember it's here. Well, except Mr.Campbell, but I have reason to believe that that's because he has drugs, or cash or bodies hidden somewhere around here.”

“Sounds likely,” Max agreed.

“But even if there is a dead body or two somewhere around here, at least no one will bother us. And it's quiet,” Davey crossed to the far side of the room, popping open the top to a guitar case on the ground and pulled out a dumb, light colored guitar with ‘tribal markings’ painted on in red, white and blue paint. 

Max snorted a little, “don't tell me you're as nerdy about the guitar as David is.”

Davey grinned at him, “I play yeah, but if you think I’d ever be caught playing some kind of campfire song, you're dead wrong. The guitar can actually be cool though, if you don't put it in the hands of a clueless moron. I mean, most instruments are pretty fucking cool, don't you think?”

Max shrugged, “I guess some of them are.”

Davey gave a small smile, “So what about you, Mister Too-Cool-For-The-Guitar? You play something?”

“Not really,” Max shrugged.

“Oh?” Davey raised an eyebrow with a smirk. 

Max frowned, “What?” 

Davey only gave the shorter boy a grin, “Nothing, you just said ‘not really’ instead of just ‘no.’ So is there something you sorta play?”

“Who are you, Sherlock Holmes?” Max raised an eyebrow, scowling. 

“That didn’t answer my question,” Davey shot back. 

Max sighed and grumbled, “I know how to play, like, two songs on the Violin, but if the information ever leaves this shitty shed, I will cut off your left ear while you sleep.”

“Very specific threat, I like it,” Davey chuckled, “And violin, huh? I didn’t think you’d be into the classics. Am I going to have to start calling you Maxwell?”

“Yeah, Yeah,” Max glared, “Make another jab and I’m going to smash that guitar you love so much. Don’t think I won’t. Just ask David, I’ve already smashed, like, ten of his. He just keeps getting more and I have no idea where.”

“Alright, Alright,” Davey said, putting his hands up in mock surrender, “Just didn’t peg you for a violin type of guy.”

“I’m not,” Max snapped. 

“Then why’d you learn a whole two songs, huh?” Davey asked. 

“It’s not because I  _ like  _ the violin genius,” Max huffed, “The violin is stupid. Music is stupid. But you need to play an instrument to get into band at school and it was either that or the flute and the flute is gay.”

Davey snorted, “ _ You’re _ in band at your school.”

“Shut up!” Max growled, although his cheeks were turning slightly red. Why’d he tell Davey this shit. He didn’t even tell Nikki or Neil these kinds of things, “You were the one who said music could be cool.”

“Yeah, music, but  _ band _ ?” Davey chuckled, “I thought you were the type of kid who bullied kids in band.”

“And you think I don’t just because I’m in it?” 

Davey chuckled putting the guitar down and sat on a stool that was meant to go with the drum set, leaning back and brushing a few hairs out of his face. Max frowned at the way the other boy searched him over with his eyes, as though trying to read him. He shifted uncomfortable. 

“I go to a shitty school,” Max explained, muttering in an attempt to get Davey to stop trying to read him, “We only have, like, three after school activities, two of which are Drama Club and fucking Homework Club. I refuse to humiliate myself in fucking Drama Club and I think the teacher who runs Homework Club is trying to get me expelled, so band was kinda my only option.”

Davey frowned, “I didn’t know after school activities were mandatory.”

Max grumbled something he knew was too soft to hear. Davey raised an eyebrow. 

“Max?” Davey questioned. 

“You know this whole listening to my shit is a very David thing to do,” Max shot back. 

Davey put a hand on his chest in mock insult, “Max, you cut me deep.”

“It’s weird that David somehow managed to unlearn sarcasm over the years,” Max said. 

“So, back on topic, what’s up with you and after school activities?” Davey asked, “or are you like me and just hate going home to your parents?”

Max frowned and felt his insides twist a little as Davey hit the hammer right on the head, but he didn’t let it show, merely shrugging and shoving his hands deeper into his sweater pockets. There was no way he was telling David more than he had to, even if he did kind of like this younger version of him. 

“Something like that,” Max said. 

Davey sighed, leaning back, “Oh yeah, I know that feeling. I hate going home, but I have, er,  _ had  _ this next door neighbor who I really like and he let's me visit him whenever I want after school. He was a music teacher at the two high school. Taught me the guitar.”

Max felt a small needle of jealousy in his gut at that. He’d never had a cool neighbor who was willing to take him in. All his neighbors either hated him or were possible drug dealers.  

“So you learned violin to join band so you could avoid your shitty parents…” Davey mused, “That makes way more sense. But I’m curious now. Is it all just to avoid home or do you maybe like the violin a little bit?”

Max opened his mouth to immediately respond that of course it was just an excuse to avoid home, that it was just some shitty means to an end but he stopped himself. He’d always assumed that he just hated the violin, just like he hated everything else, but if he was really thinking about it, like he was now, Max had never had anything against the violin. It wasn't a bad instrument to play and it didn't sound too terrible when he played so as crazy as it sounded, Max didn't actually hate the instrument, he guessed. In a way… he kinda liked it. 

“It's just a shitty means to an end, don't be dense, Davey,” Max said anyway.

“Aw,” Davey said, a smirk on his face, seeming to see right through him, “little Maxwell's got a sweet spot.”

“Shut up, Davey,” Max rolled his eyes as his cheeks reddened, although he had to fight to keep the beginnings of a grin from forming on his face as his teasing continued. However, for some reason, it didn’t piss him off the way it did when others teased him. He had a feeling it was because Davey was like him, though. He hated the others teasing him because it always came from the outside. Someone who didn’t get it, telling him how to deal with things they knew Jack shit about. But when it was Davey, he knew. It was like they were playing on the same level.   

“Here’s my proposition,” Davey smirked, “I’ll shut up about your little love affair with a certain string instrument when you play me one of the two songs you know on the violin,”

Max smirked with a huff, “Yeah, in your dreams little camp man.”


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FAQs in the end notes

Davey spread the paper out on the floor in front of him while Max moved boxes away from the windows so more light could be filter into the shed. When Davey finished taping his paper up on the far wall with duct tape, he stepped back, placing his hands on his hips.

“So,” Davey finally said, grabbing Max’s attention, “What do you think?”

Max set down the last of the boxes and moved to stand beside him, folding his arms at the piece of paper in front of him. It was a shittily drawn map of the camp, colored in with crayon with lines drawn across it in thick black marker.

“I think I just figured out why Gwen runs art camp instead of David,” Max said.

Davey grinned, shoving him a little, “Shut up. Look,” Davey pointed to the black lines around the camp, “Here’s the town, over here and the main road. I’m thinking if we make it to town. I’ve made it to town without being seen before by taking this path here. These are the areas of the woods I’ve explored, but I don’t know what lies beyond this stretch of woods here, but I’ve seen Mr.Cameron hike out that way before, so my guess is that there’s something hidden there. Maybe something that can help us escape this place. I mean, he always has that chopper handy whenever he’s in trouble, but there’s no launch pad around here. Where does it come from? My guess is around here.”

“Interesting,” Max agreed, looking at the map sideways, “That’s not a bad theory.”

“Of course it is,” Davey smiled, “Now for the real question. What do you suppose we should do once we get out of here?”

Max shrugged, “Not sure yet. I’m sure we’ll figure something out. I mean, I know the basics of what you have to do as a runaway to not die and stuff. I’ve googled it like a million times.”

“You’ve what..?” Davey looked confused.

“Oh, right,” Max said, “You still have a year to go until Google is invented. Uh, it’s on the internet. It looks up information for you for whatever you wanna know. I’ll steal David’s phone later and show you. But yeah, I figure stupid saps will take pity on us and give us free shit as long as we play it innocent and whip out a good sob story. I figure if we can make it to my brother’s place we’ll be golden. Sam’s cool, he’ll let us stay with him.”

“You have a brother?” Davey raised an eyebrow, “He doesn’t stay with your parents? How old is he.”

“Like, twenty-something,” Max shrugged, “I forget, he left home as soon as he was old enough and never looked back. My folks haven’t really talk about him since. All I know is he lives somewhere in Hawkston.”

“That’s a pretty rough city, isn’t it?” Davey raised an eyebrow.

Max shrugged, “Rent’s cheap though.”

Davey nodded.

“But for now,” Max said, grabbing a red marker off of the stool where Davey had left it, “Our mission is to find out what lies in this neck of the woods-” Max circle the unexplored zone in red, smirking, “We’ll call it Operation Launch Pad.”

“Perfect,” Davey grinned, “And we can use this as our home base. It’s perfect. I mean, I doubt anyone’s going to bother us here. No one knows about it except you and me.”

As if on cue the shed door was swung open with a bang.

“Davey! Max! I’ve been looking for both of you for hours!” David stood in the doorway, his face red as he looked around the shed. Both David and Max’s faces feel at the sight of him.

Davey sighed, grumbling, “Well, No one except you and me and _me_. ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FAQs:
> 
> -Will Davey's actions affect older David since he's his past self?  
> No. Think of Davey less as David's past self who was ripped out of the past but more as a conjured up projection of David's past self with all of David's memories and personality traits up to that point, so this Davey will never go back to the past and eventually become David. He's a separate entity all together.
> 
> -Is Maxvid a thing or will Davey and Max's relationship be romantic at any point?  
> Short Answer: No  
> Long Answer: Maxvid/Maxvey is mentioned and theorized about by the other characters a lot, but no, their relationship is completely platonic. To clarify, I mean that the other characters wonder/assume that the two of them have some kind of romantic relationship because of how close they are, but in reality they don't. So the idea of them having a romantic relationship does get mentioned a lot in the context of:  
> "Hey, so, uh, max, you and Davey sure seem close, there's not anything going on there? Right?"  
> "What? Gross, Neil don't be a moron."  
> That kinda thing. But it's more of a joke than anything else. The closest they ever get to anything ""romantic"" happening is having some really close bonding moments and playing music together as friends, but that's it. They're friends. It's more of like, a brotherly relationship than anything else. 
> 
> -Will you tag this "Maxvid"?  
> No :/
> 
> Thank you.


	10. Chapter 10

“Now I don’t know what you boys were thinking when you snuck away like that but I’ll have you know you had Gwen and I worried sick,” David was ranting as the three of them trudged back to camp just as the sun was beginning to set, “Luckily I remembered where I used to sneak off to when I was you two’s age.”

“Oh yes, so lucky,” Davey shot back sarcastically.

“And another thing,” David said, “I know you think you’re very clever, mister, but if you don’t think I remember making that very map when I went to camp, think again and I may not know what you’re planning, but I will not let you drag Max into trouble, understand?”

Davey recoiled, “Oh what? So I’m a bad influence now? Hate to break it to you pal, but Max is every bit into ditching your lame camp activities as I am.”

David’s face seemed to darken ever so slightly, “Well, you might think you’re mighty smart, young man, but before you and do anything you’ll regret, I suggest you think about whether or not you’re willing to let your bad decisions affect your friends.”

Davey grit his teeth, “What’s your problem!?”

David didn’t answer but merely turned around and continued walking.

Davey seemed to be getting ready to say something else but Max stopped him, pulling on his sleeve, “Just forget him,” he whispered, “he’s trying to get us to back down. Use that spite to fuel you.”

Davey nodded and they walked the rest of the way in silence. By time they got back it was nearly dark and David dismissed the two of the to dinner after a ‘firm talking to.’

When Max and Davey approached the mess hall, Neil and Nikki were immediately at Max’s side, asking questions.

“Dude, where were you all day?” Neil asked, looking nervous, “I can’t believe you left me alone on extreme sports days, Max! Of all the days you could choose to ditch me, you choose  Extreme sports day?!”

“Oh, it wasn’t that bad Neil!” Nikki exclaimed, “Ered showed me how to do a kick flip. I broke the board in half. Ered said that wasn’t what was supposed to happen, but I think it’s cooler that way.”

“Seriously,” Neil said, “I got, like, ten new bruises today alone before I finally got a nosebleed and Gwen let me go. It was a nightmare.”

“Don’t forget that awesome face-plant you did,” Nikki reminded him.

“It hurts just thinking about it,” Neil wailed, “Seriously dude, I hope you have a good excuse for ditching and an even better one for not taking me with you.”

Max shrugged, “Davey and I were working on an escape plan in one of the storage sheds. We skipped out while David was busy at breakfast. It was already too late to grab you without getting caught.”

Neil pursed his lips as soon as Max mentioned the other boy’s name, his eyes darting over to the auburn-haired boy as if seeing him for the first time.

“Oh.” Neil said.

“Hey,” Nikki said, “You guys did that yesterday too. When are you gonna let us tag along?”

“Relax,” Davey said, “We didn’t _not_ let you tag along. It was just timing.”

“Yeah,” Neil said, folding his arms, “But you still ditched us.”

“Calm down, guys,” Max said, “tomorrow’s an activities free day, so you guys can come and help us with Operation Launch Pad. We’ll show you everything then.”

“Oooh!” Nikki gasped, her eyes lighting up, “A secret mission!?”

“ _Operation Launch Pad?”_ Neil asked, looking less appeased by this news than Nikki did.

“Yeah,” Davey said, “Me and Max worked out all the details but we could use a couple extra hands.”

Neil pursed his lips, “Max and I.”

“What?” Davey raised and eyebrow.

“You said, ‘ _Me and Max_ ,’” Neil said, “but It’s _‘Max and I_.’”

Davey frowned, “Uh... right.”

“Anyway,” Max said, “Shitty grammar aside, I’m starving. Come on.”

Max and Nikki walked on ahead towards the mess hall, leaving the two other boys behind. Neil and Davey each gave each other a long, hard look, neither one seeming to like what they saw, before they turned to follow the others in to dinner.


	11. Chapter 11

The next morning, Max woke up at around noon, like he always did when he didn’t have David hovering around, disturbing the peace. He wasn’t surprised to see the tent was empty, since he was always the last to wake up and was kinda glad for the calm as he pulled on his hoodie and shoes and made his way out.

The first thing Max noticed when he stepped outside was that the camp seemed even more barren than usual. Even on free days like this, he could usually still hear Preston reciting lines, or catch Nerris doing some lame role playing or something. Today, the camp was mostly silent.

Mostly.

Max heard a faint sound coming from off in the distance and followed it, figuring this is where the others were and his curiosity making him wonder what had grabbed everyone’s attention and made them all shut up for once in their life.

Max’s search brought him all the way over to the camp stage. The one they’d performed Preston’s stupid play and other pointless endeavors on. Now that he was closer, he noticed the other campers gathered around it as a soft melody floated over the crowd.

Max blinked as he noticed Davey in the middle of it all, sitting on the edge of the stage with David’s guitar placed on his lap, playing some song Max had never heard of before, probably because it was so old. Regardless it sounded good.

“Do you sing too Davey?” Nerris asked, looking up at him with awe.

Davey forced a chuckle, obviously made uncomfortable by all the attention, “Well, only when I have to for writing songs. I prefer it when other people sing the songs I write.”

“Wow, the guitar is so cool,” Space kid said, staring at the instrument in wonderment, “Can you teach me?”

“Eh,” Davey said, seeming less than enthusiastic about the idea, “I’m not much of a teacher, sorry.”

“Oh!” Preston said, starry eyed as he watched, “Play us something you wrote, Davey!”

Davey was looking less and less pleased with the crowd with every question and interruption from his playing and Max supposed it was time he saved the poor kid and got the others to leave him alone.

With a heavy sigh, Max climbed onto the stage, standing behind Davey and glaring out over the crowd.

“Okay, rejects,” Max said, “As much as I know all you losers want your very own teenage Casanova to come and serenade you so you can live happily fucking ever after, you ain’t finding it here so get the hearts out of your eyes and get lost before I literally barf.”

Max had made sure a long time ago that all the campers knew just how serious he was when he made threats, and they quickly dispersed, seeming a little disgruntled.

Davey set aside his guitar and looked back at Max.

“They think I’m their teenage Casanova?” Davey questioned, a smirk on his face.

“Clearly,” Max rolled his eyes, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Preston act gayer. And he does theater.”

Davey snorted, “Okay then. So, you ready to go work on our mission?”

“Yeah,” Max nodded, “Just need to grab Nikki and Neil, then we can head out.”

Davey’s grin seemed to drop at the mention.

“Can’t we just… ya know? Go?” Davey asked. "Without them?"

Max paused, frowning, “What? Why? I said I’d fill them in on the plan today.”

“I don’t know…” Davey shrugged, “I’ve just been getting serious ‘we don’t like you’ vibes from them.”

“How so?” Max raised an eyebrow, “Did Nikki bite you? Because if she did, don’t take it personally. It’s just her asserting dominance or whatever. She does it to everyone.”

“No, fortunately I’ve been spared that experience,” Davey said, “It’s more Neil actually.”

“Neil?” Max asked, “Dude, don’t worry about Neil. He’s a bit of an asshole but he’s cool. I seriously doubt he doesn’t like you.”

Davey didn’t seem very convinced but he nodded. No use in arguing when he didn’t know how to convince Max otherwise. Not without bringing up last night and Davey really didn’t feel like talking about last night…

“Come on,” Max said, tugging on Davey’s hoodie to get him to hop off the stage, “I bet Nikki and Neil are still at breakfast and I haven’t even gotten my coffee yet, let's go.”

Davey forced a smile as he hopped off the stage and followed Max, “Whatever you say, dude.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before someone lectures me about the theater is gay stereotype, yes, I know it doesn't apply to everyone, but hey, I'm gay and I do theater. So there's that.


	12. Chapter 12

It was Saturday, which meant the Campers had been left to their own devices for the most part. Usually on weekends, David and Gwen would be nowhere to be found, letting the campers do as they pleased. However… today...

Max scowled as he watched David patrolling around the camp, smiling brightly and chatting with campers as he went.

“Shit.” Max muttered, “How the fuck are we supposed to make it to the base with David breathing down our necks? What's his deal? He usually spend his Saturdays watching trash TV with Gwen.”

Davey frowned, equally annoyed. “Damn bastard's probably hanging around just to make sure we don't run off.”

“Ugh. What we need is a distraction.” Max said, looking over at his three friends, “Anyone got any bright ideas?”

Neil and Nikki exchanged a blank look before turning back to their friend with a shrug. Davey however thought about it for a long moment, pacing.

“Well,” Davey said after a long moment, “I do have one idea…”

***

“Hey, Space Kid,” Davey smiled wandering over to the space camp with a bright smile on his face, “what’re you doing?”

Space kid immediately sat up, bumping his helmet on his own cardboard rocket ship in his enthusiasm.

“Oh! Hey Davey!” He smiled, “I’m just working on my rocket. Some basic repairs, ya know, the usual stuff. What about you? I thought you were hanging out with Max and Nikki and Neil.”

“Oh, I am,” Davey assured him with a nod, “We have a whole day of stuff planned out. We're going to be pretty busy. I’m just here because I felt bad, ya know? You said you wanted to learn Guitar earlier, right?”

Space Kid’s face light up, “Oh, yeah! The guitar is so cool! I wish I could play.”

“And I wish that too, Space Kid,” Davey assured him, “And I was too nervous to admit it before, but I really wanna teach you!”

“Really!?” Space Kid’s eyes shown with admiration.

“Oh yeah, I totally do!” Davey insisted, “It's just, with Max and everything, I’m just so busy, there's no way I could do it. I'm just one person after all…”

“Oh,” Space kid deflated a little.

Davey smiled to himself, pausing for dramatic effect before pretending to have some great epiphany. “But wait! Space Kid! I'm not just one person! I just had the most wonderful idea! Why don't you ask David to teach you guitar!?”

Space Kid frowned, unsure, “David?”

Davey nodded, smiling convincingly, “Oh sure! Just think about it! David is me, just from the future! So he knows everything I do about the guitar. And besides, since he's my future self, I’ll automatically remember everything he does from the lesson since we're the same person, so it’ll be just like we spend the day together!”

“But, um, doesn't that only work the other way around? Your future self just remembers everything your past self does?” Space Kid questioned.

“... No?” Davey offered.

“Oh,” Space Kid said after a moment, “That makes sense.”

“Yup,” Davey agreed, “So you should totally go ahead and ask David for guitar lessons right now.”

“Okay!” Space Kid nodded excitedly, “I will!”

“Good,” Davey grinned putting a hand on the other boy's shoulder, “And remember Space Kid, I got nervous about teaching another person guitar when you asked earlier, so David's probably going to be nervous about it too. The trick is to be persistent. Can you do that, Space Kid?”

“Okay Davey!” Space kid nodded, puffing himself up before waddling off to go talk to David.

Davey grinned, watching him go before turning back to meet his friends, who were watching from around the corner of the space camp. He grinned at them and gave a thumbs up.

“That ought to keep David busy for awhile,” Davey said, walking back over, “I’m willing to bet, if there's one thing David won't be able to shut up about, it's music.”

“Let's hope so,” Max said, grabbing Nikki’s sleeve and gesturing for Neil to follow as he moved to follow Space Kid as he went to go distract David. 

Over across the camp, The four kids watched as Space Kid bothered David over lessons and David welled up with tears, touched by the camper's enthusiasm, beginning a rant about how wonderful it was when he started learning the guitar when he was younger.

“Okay, it did not happen like that,” Davey said under his breath, rolling his eyes.

“Whatever,” Max said, “Let’s just go while he’s distracted, come on.”

Max tugged Davey along, sneaking out of the camp as David began lecturing Space Kid about the different parts of the guitar while the space camper looked as though he was regretting his decision more and more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, shit happened


End file.
